One of the winningest coaches in college basketball history walked away Thursday.
After 873 wins, Jim Calhoun — the man who guided Connecticut to three national championships — retired. Calhoun, 70, had missed time over the past few seasons due to a back injury and frequent cancer treatments. He turns the program over to his former pupil — and former Sixers guard — Kevin Ollie.
“I am very honored and humbled to become the UConn men’s basketball coach,” Ollie told reporters. “I cannot put into words how grateful I am to coach Jim Calhoun, who retires today as one of the most legendary coaches in the history of college basketball.”
Calhoun spent 26 seasons at UConn and put the school on the hoops map. He won 10 Big East regular-season championships and seven Big East Tournament titles. Calhoun was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2005.
There was some turmoil, too. The Huskies are banned for postseason play this season due to poor classroom performance.
“There have been some bumps in the road but we are headed in the right direction,” Calhoun said.
